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Mystery Snail Erosion

52K views 51 replies 19 participants last post by  Lupin 
#1 ·
Well this one is a classic example of what not to buy when you look for a snail. I got this one 4 days ago and it didn't make it through today.

I wanted to show this to help others recognize what to look for when buying a snail. This is not a snail you want to buy, not in this condition anyway.


This erosion is the worst I have seen. The side of the shell is gone and the area where the door would close is so gone it could never seal completely.

This one I didn't see in the LFS. The end of the spiral is so eroded that the shell is almost transparent and there is a huge hole in it.

I hate to say it but don't try to rescue them. All the research I have done says they are too far gone when they reach this point. I tried to save them, even did special feedings but once the shell has degraded this far they are beyond saving. Hopefully this will help at least one person keep from making the same mistake I have made twice now. I am not mad at the LFS because this takes a long time to happen and the stock is new enough that it is not the LFS fault. The breeders take this poor of care of these creatures and gives LFS a bad rap. It is unfortunate that my LFS doesn't know better, but they will tomorrow.

If you have a snail in this condition even the slightest thing wrong with the water, trace amounts of copper that would normally be safe, any salt at all or anything wrong with the water any snail in this condition is a gonner.

Make sure to hand inspect any snail you are going to buy. Look at the shell through the light to make sure it isn't translucent. Check that the snail can completely close the door to the shell and it looks like it seals. Any serious divots in the shell or other erosion is a sign of a snail not taken care of and not a good purchase.
 
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#27 ·
It's a calcium cuttle bone but they're in cute shapes for the hermit craps. Check out the hermit crabs next time your at one of the bigger stores, since they're trentdy now, most stores have a bunch of stuff for them now.
 
#28 ·
Is this something that the snails are suppose to eat, or it just has to be in the water? I read this thread the other day before I bought my snails, and found it helpful. But when I bought my snails they had the weekend feeders in their tank, that looked like it had been munched on. So I bought some thinking thats what my snails would eat for their calcium. I have had them for 2 or 3 days now, and none of them has gone anywhere need the feeder. One of my mollies picked at it a few time when I put it on there, and after that the only one that seems interested is one of my shrimp,lol. Also just how often am I suppose to do this?
 
#44 ·
This is an old post however the answer will be given for future reference. Any food with plaster of Paris will alter the water chemistry by increasing the pH and hardness levels so make sure your fish can tolerate it otherwise they become more prone to bacterial infections. Snails are another story. They are fine and because of high calcium demand, any food containing plaster of Paris will prove more than beneficial to the snails. For as long as the food is eaten quickly, another one can be added with no issues.

could TUMS work?

kind of an odd question i know.
I'd worry about the flavoring, but I'm curious what others have to say.
I don't know about TUMS. I've read on another forum that people have done it, but I don't know if it really is a good idea or not. I don't have enough knowledge about it.
The answer may be missed so I thought I'd recollect all the quotes and point the answer below. I bought a few dozens of Tums for daily dosing on my snail tanks which I expanded in number to accommodate the growing number of snails. Flavors available in strawberry, lemon, lime and orange.

More findings reveal the unflavored ones are ignored and for a very obvious reason, they are not sugary which attract the snails more but too much sugar may be responsible for clouding the tank as evident by my accidental overdosing of honey in a snail jello recipe although the snails remained unfazed at all.

Here are the ingredients of Tums after a thorough research as the package never included it at all which makes it frustrating for me to hunt down the ingredients to determine whether it has anything that may harm the snails. Tums is okay for use.
Sucrose, calcium carbonate 1000mg, corn starch, talc, mineral oil, adipic acid, artificial flavors, sodium polyphosphate, red 40 lake, blue 1 lake.
As an update, I tried another calcium brand, Tums. It has added strawberry or orange flavoring but the snails went for it. No ingredients added other than the pure calcium carbonate and flavoring. It took the canas only an hour to finish them off but the canas are very large anyway. It took about 2 hours for the 16-20 brigs to finish them. Tums doesn't disintegrate quickly compared to Caltrate. Will test calci-aid and calsan if I can find these ones.
Personal view from a member in another forum I am a member of towards peppermint flavored Tums.
I'd be cautious with any peppermint flavored ones. Peppermint oil has side effects on its own, in large amounts. Since they're dosed for humans, I'd be careful of it with the much smaller snails. Plus, a lot of the time peppermint flavored junk will actually "burn" your mouth, imagine a snail crawling on it.
 
#32 ·
If anyone hasn't yet, you can try Caltrate which has a very high calcium concentration. It can be crushed into fine powder and mixed with snail food recipes. I enjoyed a lot making snail foods out of honey, unflavored gelatin, baby foods and calcium pills suggested by msjinkzd. It has been noted snails tend to like anthing sugary so the honey has been added to entice even the timid ones to eat. Caltrate can also be dropped directly to the tank and your snails will simply eat the dissolving form.
 
#35 ·
Jim, do your Caltrate tablets have Vitamin D added? It's really frustrating to find Caltrate that don't have it. Point is if Vitamin D is taken in excess, whilst it does enhance absorption of calcium, it becomes the most toxic of all vitamins available. Supplements containing Vit. D in concentrated form are not safe. Adults should be careful when taking Vit. D. Keep out of reach of children. Tolerable upper intake for vitamin D is 50 micrograms per day for adults.

I may need to try other options just so I won't have to used Caltrate (with vitamin D added) frequently to enhance my snails' shells but this could take awhile and who knows how snails will react to different brands considering I've noticed from all the study I've done that Caltrate seems to be the one that attracts snails most. Who knows what material they used that could possibly entice snails just like that.
 
#34 ·
You're so lucky, Jim!
 
#36 ·
Mine does have vitamin D. I don't use the stuff myself, as I'm not exactly at risk for osteoporosis, but do you know if the vitamin D is unsafe for fish and inverts? I actually don't dose Caltrate anymore for my adult mystery snails as my water has a pH of 7.2 and is fairly hard so they don't have shell problems. I only use the Caltrate in my pond snail breeding tanks as it really seems to help them grow faster.
 
#37 · (Edited)
Mine does have vitamin D. I don't use the stuff myself, as I'm not exactly at risk for osteoporosis, but do you know if the vitamin D is unsafe for fish and inverts? I actually don't dose Caltrate anymore for my adult mystery snails as my water has a pH of 7.2 and is fairly hard so they don't have shell problems. I only use the Caltrate in my pond snail breeding tanks as it really seems to help them grow faster.
Unsafe if used excessively. Shouldn't hurt though if used at least every 2 weeks or once a month. It does enhance calcium absorption and no more than that.
Point is if Vitamin D is taken in excess, whilst it does enhance absorption of calcium, it becomes the most toxic of all vitamins available. Supplements containing Vit. D in concentrated form are not safe. Adults should be careful when taking Vit. D. Keep out of reach of children. Tolerable upper intake for vitamin D is 50 micrograms per day for adults.
 
#39 ·
Yep. It's another alternative.
 
#40 ·
As an update, I tried another calcium brand, Tums. It has added strawberry or orange flavoring but the snails went for it. No ingredients added other than the pure calcium carbonate and flavoring. It took the canas only an hour to finish them off but the canas are very large anyway. It took about 2 hours for the 16-20 brigs to finish them. Tums doesn't disintegrate quickly compared to Caltrate. Will test calci-aid and calsan if I can find these ones.
 
#42 ·
#43 ·
Just to add more information...The spires if damaged cannot be fixed. The damage is permanent but this can be minimized by keeping your pH and KH consistently high. Acidic water by low pH is often responsible for the damage. Low KH can cause the pH to swing and this may have dire consequences to the shells, something you should watch out for.

As for the mantle, they can still be repaired if the damage is not severe. Thick shell growth can be accomplished by lowering the temperature to slow down their growth. It is not really a bad thing and in fact, the thicker the shell, the less likely the shell is damaged. Severely damaged shells may need nail polish coating but be careful not to put the chemical in contact with the soft body parts as it can burn their skin and possibly kill them. Here are the procedures of how to apply nail polish on the shell.
Applesnail.net • View topic - Coating with nail polish
 
#45 ·
The following remain untested for possible side effects although theories are included:
Setlers antacid: calcium carbonate, also contains Sucrose, dextrose, maise starch, talc, magnesium stearate, peppermint flavour, adipic acid.

Gaviscon cool: 250mg sodium alginate, 133.5mg sodium bicarbonate, 80mg calcium carbonate as active ingredients, also contains xylitol, mannitol (e132) polyethylene glycol 20,000, aspartame (E951), magnesium stearate, and peppermint flavouring and colour (E132)

The peppermint flavor has been pointed to be the issue however per the previous post so chances are this may not be suitable for use at all.

I have yet to research other brands thoroughly and test them due to lack of time. This includes Calsan and Calci-Aid. Can anyone please forward me the list of ingredients these brands have? Thanks.
 
#46 ·
my brown mystery snail

I have had my snail for a while now and when i got him he had an undamaged shell, now he ha multiple line like cracks and dents and holes in his shell. you mentioned calcium as a reason for this, i was wondering how to get my snail calcium or if it is too late.

i am also confused because i have now 3 other snails one a very new addition, another newer, and the last was bought with the now damaged snail. the reason i am confused is because the one i bought with the damaged one is not showing the same signs in his shell. if any body knows of some sort of calcium supplement i can add or even another way to save my snail, that would be great. the picture i ave is not that detailed but here it is
 
#47 ·
I have had my snail for a while now and when i got him he had an undamaged shell, now he ha multiple line like cracks and dents and holes in his shell. you mentioned calcium as a reason for this, i was wondering how to get my snail calcium or if it is too late.

i am also confused because i have now 3 other snails one a very new addition, another newer, and the last was bought with the now damaged snail. the reason i am confused is because the one i bought with the damaged one is not showing the same signs in his shell. if any body knows of some sort of calcium supplement i can add or even another way to save my snail, that would be great. the picture i ave is not that detailed but here it is
Welcome to Fishforum.com, Snailor!

Could you please repost the pic? It is not working. What are your pH and KH? Try giving Caltrate with Vitamin D to enhance calcium absorption, then proceed to Tums or pure Caltrate (without Vitamin D). Stick with calcium enriched foods such as collards and seaweeds. You can also make plaster of Paris pucks. Search my threads for the recipes.
 
#49 ·
#52 ·
How do these supplements and treatments affect fish? My snails live with guppies. Do I need to get a tank just for the snails?
Calcium carbonate increases KH and pH so some fish from soft acidic waters may become susceptible to finrot although I don't find this a common issue otherwise the supplements suggested should not be an issue. Guppies are fine with snails although some do have a tendency to harass the snails. If you find one like that, isolate immediately. I had to ditch one female guppy off my snail tanks after I found her trying to bite their antennaes off.
 
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